


GHQNB

by caacrinolaas



Series: Bad Things Happen Bingo [5]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Brainwashing, Fantastic Racism, Galra Empire, Galra Keith (Voltron), Gen, Mentioned Krolia (Voltron), POV Kolivan (Voltron), Slurs, Worldbuilding
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-03
Updated: 2019-06-03
Packaged: 2020-04-07 11:38:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,190
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19084261
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/caacrinolaas/pseuds/caacrinolaas
Summary: Learning what other people have to say about you behind your back is almost never fun. Especially when "other people" is thousands of millions.BTHB: Fantastic Racism





	GHQNB

Kolivan doesn't often use his leadership status to override the other high order members, but this was one of the few times the Blade leader refused to budge. 

Ever since Keith had joined the Blade of Marmora as a trainee, Kolivan had personally stepped up as his mentor, a task he has not done in what must be centuries. It was much more difficult than he thought it would be, but the fact that Keith was completely new to galran culture meant that Kolivan had to start completely from scratch. 

There were plenty of Blades that could teach him the ways of the Galra and of the Blade of Marmora. But this is Krolia's son, something Kolivan never thought he would say, and he knew how Krolia would want her child to be taught. 

Krolia does not shy away from things, no matter how difficult they are. So Kolivan would not either. 

That didn't mean that other mentors often discouraged his teaching methods, especially today when telling the group of his plans. 

"He'd be too young to understand this." One had said. 

"He's a teenager, not a toddler." Kolivan had quipped back. 

"Don't you think it's a bit harsh?" Another had said. 

"He came here to learn about his heritage. This is part of what it means to have this heritage, and it's an important one." Kolivan had said. 

"Can't it wait until he's a little older, at least?" 

"We can not baby him and pretend he's not part of a heavily subjugated minority. Especially not in the middle of a war." 

Eventually they relented after realizing how stubborn Kolivan was about this decision, as well as a not-so-gentle reminder that he was the leader of the entire organization. He genuinely does not enjoy flaunting his leadership status, that was a purely Empirical mindset, but this time he must. 

Keith entered the room he was called into without announcement, walking right up to Kolivan's side. Irritation bubbled in his throat at the audaciousness, but he knew lecturing the boy over something this trivial would be a waste of his time. 

Kolivan knew that Krolia's son wasn't afraid of him, a fact not surprising knowing that he often faced much more intimidating figures while on the battlefield. Especially not surprising knowing how little he cared about Kolivan's authoritative status. The Blade leader wondered if he had such a defiance of authority back on Earth. 

"So... I'm guessing we're not sparring." 

"No. Fighting isn't all there is to the Blade of Marmora, child." Kolivan heard Keith's bit back growl but payed it no mind. "Our goal is to seek knowledge. Not victory." 

"Are we hacking into things? I think you've got the wrong guy." 

"No." Without turning his gaze, Kolivan pointed at the nearby chair. "Sit." 

A tense silence followed, the Blade leader could almost hear the younger gritting his teeth. Keith let out a loud sigh, sounding defeated. "What did I do wrong." 

Just that sentence alone held many implications, but Kolivan let it stay in the back of his mind. He's a military leader, not a child psychologist. 

"Do what I say." Kolivan turned back and gave the boy a pointed stare, almost as a challenge. 

Kolivan watched closely as the boy's eyebrows furrowed, fists curling and uncurling slightly. The Blade leader almost thought he was going to continue arguing before his shoulders slumped in defeat and fell down into the chair. Clearly, there was still basic discipline to be taught, but that was not what they were here for. 

Kolivan slid the console in front of Keith and started the video. 

On the screen, a galra wearing the highly-formal throne room attire was standing in the middle of the screen, hands placed behind their back. The surroundings appeared to be what must be the Empire's Headquarters. While the galra on the screen did not have the physical appearance of a soldier, his voice was as powerful as one as he directly addressed the camera. 

_'Welcome to GHQNB, everything you need to know about the Empire in one handy news network, once a movement!'_

Keith opened his mouth to say something, but Kolivan stopped him by reaching forward and stopping the video. The younger Blade looked up at him in confusion. 

"Tell me everything that was wrong with what you just saw." 

"Um... It belonged to the Empire...?" 

Kolivan frowned. "A bit more specific, please." 

"I don't know what I'm looking for." Keith snapped back. 

"That is what you need to learn. I'll play it again, this time pay attention to the wording." 

After Kolivan replayed the clip, Keith was silent for a moment as he thought over what he was shown. The Blade leader prayed he understood what the purpose of this was by now, Keith had a habit of refusing to do things on the Blade base until it was fully explained. 

"GHQNB? Does that stand for Galra... Headquarters News... Broadcast?" Keith looked up at the Blade leader, who nodded his head once. He continued. "There's only one news network for the Empire and it's directly from the headquarters. Zarkon can decide what his soldiers and civilians see." 

Keith paused for a moment, long enough that Kolivan was about to replay it again, but he began talking again. "It's also only play once a week. They probably cherry pick what they wanna say in that time, since the Empire is so large nobody would question it." 

Kolivan nodded in approval. Keith was getting the hang of it much faster than he was expecting, though most galra raised outside the Empire were able to pick up on such discrepancies much faster. 

_'This has been a very riveting period of time for the Galra Empire! Our armies are stronger than ever as we fight against the plague that is the Voltron Coalition.'_

"Wow. That's not accurate at all." 

_'Emperor Zarkon has made some powerful decisions as of recently, shifting the very grounds of the Empire's Headquarters.'_

Kolivan reached forward and stopped the voice once again. "Tell me what was wrong." 

"It just wasn't accurate." Keith replied more quickly now that he knew what to look for. "Their armies have been steadily weakening after Zarkon was defeated. They also called the Voltron coalition a plague. I'm assuming they call it that a lot, though, 'cause of how easily they said it." 

Good. At this pace, they could get through the entire broadcast, which would be a first for these types of lessons. 

Before Kolivan could press play, Keith interrupted his movement with a sharply toned comment. "I still don't get why you're showing me this." 

"One of the most important lessons a Blade has to learn is being able to identify propaganda." The reply was quick on his tongue, having already readied numerous replies to such questions. "While undercover agents learn this much more intensely, it is a skill all of us must have." 

All Keith responded was with an acknowledging hum. 

_'As stated in Emperor Zarkon's Empire-wide announcement, Lotor and his half-breed Generals have been placed under immediate execution and removed from his place as the Empire's Prince. Many are happy about this turn of events as Lotor has never been considered a true galra, some even saying he and his army should not have been able to live in the Empire this long.'_

Stop. 

Kolivan looked over at Keith expectantly, but the younger was still staring at the screen with an unreadable expression. Eventually, the younger turned and looked at him with an accusatory look. 

"Why are you showing me this?" 

"This is what every galra soldier and civilian sees. As you stated earlier, this is their only news source. This broadcast I am showing you now has received the most positive feedback in centuries." Kolivan watched as Keith's face slightly fell at the last statement and cast a side look at the still screen. "Now tell me what is wrong with what was said. I'll play it again." 

Kolivan began watching his expression carefully this time, but found it remained unchanged. 

"They called his Generals 'half-breeds'." Keith spat out the term. "I dunno how galra see that term but it's a really bad one on Earth." 

"You won't find any in the Blade using it." 

"They don't consider them to be galra, either." Keith said bitterly. "Even though Lotor has been in the royal family as long as Zarkon." 

"Half galra never have been, and this has been the case since before the Empire." That was an understatement, but he'll leave the more horrid parts of pre-Empire history for later. 

"But... literally everyone else does." 

"Yes. Being able to handle different judgments from both sides of your heritage is something you also have to learn." 

"Is that why you're showing me this?" 

"Partly. You have to be taught about Empirical propaganda either way. This is only the beginning of these lessons." Kolivan sighed. "However, you must know how galran media treats people like you and how much this is ingrained into the Empire's mindset. I can say with certainty that one day this will affect you much more directly. Understanding this now can prevent it from taking you by surprise." 

Keith was looking more ill by the second. Kolivan gave him a few minutes of silence to process this new information before starting up the video again. 

_'Now that Lotor has been removed from the Empire, what we will be doing with his half-breed soldiers are up for debate. While dismissing them would be the most obvious choice, many are concerned of the possibility that they will turn to the Coalition. Another recent suggestion is to also place them under immediate execution, which is growing in popularity.'_

"Wait... what?!" Keith's voice cracked as he reached forward and stopped the video himself. "They're planning _genocide!_ Why isn't this being talked about? Why didn't-" 

"This was from several movements ago. Our operatives have reported that the suggestion is no longer of consideration. If we truly believe Lotor's half galran soldiers to be in danger, we will contact Voltron immediately." 

That didn't relax Keith in the slightest. 

_'Whatever Emperor Zarkon decides will have the Empire's best interest at heart!'_

The Blade leader thought Keith had completely checked out, but the younger took him by surprise once again. 

"They're putting Zarkon on a pedestal as usual. They also keep saying... 'many', a lot. They aren't specifying who 'many' is. It could only be a few people." His tone was significantly more flat than normal, but Kolivan continued as long as he was talking. 

_'As of now, the Coalition propaganda referred to as the 'Voltron Show' has been making it's way throughout Empirical ground. If you see any showings or merchandise, remove it and alert a nearby soldier immediately.'_

"They're setting it up as a threat by making it something dealt by soldiers." 

_'These shows have gained large popularity, but there are massive holes in their plan to increase the size of their traitorous group. For one, they rely solely on their own culture for what they consider to be entertainment. Secondly, the Paladins they are using in the shows are not all the true Paladins.'_

"They called the Coalition traitorous. They're also shining Voltron in a bad light by implying drawing from our own culture is bad." Keith turned back to Kolivan, who readied himself for another question. "Why is it that they have access to the Voltron shows but it's nearly impossible for us to get Empire news?" 

"Everything delivered to the Empire is heavily moderated. Even our best cryptanalysts have a hard time getting a hold of video footage from this network, so most times we learn what was said from our spies."

Keith seemed satisfied with the response. Kolivan pressed play for what ended up being the last time. 

_'Many have speculated that they are using a false Red Paladin to act in place of the real one to hide the fact that one of their Paladins is a galra half-breed. If this were to get out to non-galra planets, it could land a massive blow to Voltron's reputation.'_

That must have been the kicker, because Kolivan was met with silence. He looked down to see that Keith was several shades paler than what's healthy. His slightly unfocused eyes did not go unnoticed by Kolivan, either, and the Blade leader took it as a wordless indication that he's seen enough. 

Kolivan can't admit he would be very calm and collected if he was currently in Keith's position, either. Turning off the console, he gave a dismissive gesture to the boy, who slowly got up to leave. 

"Keith." 

He turned back to Kolivan at his name, who was fixing him with a stern glare. 

"Don't let this affect how you view yourself, or your heritage. I can't afford to have a teenager with multiple life crises mulling around the base." Keith snorted at that. "But you have to understand how it affects you. It's for your own safety." 

"I understand." 

_Not fully_ , Kolivan thought as he watched Krolia's son disappear into the hallway, _and I hope you never have to._

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you Texas education for forcing way too many units about propaganda and logical fallacies into my brain than what's actually necessary. Also thank you to my conservative grandparents for always blasting Fox News so I know how bigots talk on news stations


End file.
